NEW YORK, N.Y. (January 6, 2010)-VERSUS, the cable television home of World Extreme Cagefighting® (WEC®), will air its first live fight card of the year on Sunday, January 10, at 9 p.m. ET.  The action-packed night, with five televised fights over two and a half hours, features a main event headlined by reigning lightweight champion Jamie Varner (16-2-2) as he defends his title against interim champion Ben Henderson (10-1).  The live event will originate from ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif. and will be presented in HD and Spanish language SAP where available.

Varner’s last fight was in January 2009 when he defended his title against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, winning by split decision.  The fight ended badly with Varner suffering multiple injuries, including a lacerated eye, a broken hand and a fractured left foot. Due to the champion’s injuries, Ben Henderson fought Cerrone for the interim lightweight title in October 2009. Henderson caused a major upset by defeating Cerrone, but paved the way for himself to battle Varner in the cage for the championship title.

Also featured on Sunday’s night card is Sacramento native and former featherweight champion Urijah Faber (22-3) as he faces-off against top-ranked Raphael Assuncao (14-1). Faber is looking to make his way back to the top after losing the title fight re-match in June 2009 against Mike Brown. Assuncao will prove to be a worthy opponent as the fighter has a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, has won his last two WEC fights and has a dangerous ground game.

Final matches of the night include former featherweight champion Mike Brown (22-5) as he returns to the cage just two months after losing his title to Jose Aldo. Brown’s opponent will be Anthony Morrison (14-7), a newcomer to the WEC, who won his last two UFC fights with the most recent bout taking place in December 2009 against veteran Alvin Robinson.  Rounding out the night is a lightweight fight between Dave Jansen (11-0) and Kamal Shalorous (5-0) and a fierce featherweight battle between Mackens Semerizier (7-0) and Deividas Taurosevicius (11-3).